Reviews by moviebuffgirl

That's the tooth, the whole tooth, and nothing but the tooth!

Former pro wrestler Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson has come a long way from his WWF roots. Now, he stars in this funny, heart-warming tale of a man who is forced to undergo a week of being a tooth fairy after telling his girlfriend's six year old daughter that tooth fairies don't exist. I'm getting used to seeing tough guys play real softies in family movies; the first being Vin Diesel in The Pacifier. Now, Johnson steps up to the plate as Derek Thompson, a pro hockey player who has been dubbed as the Tooth Fairy, based on his ability to knock the teeth off other hockey players. Despite the fame he gets from his offensive abilities on ice, Thompson isn't good with anything else. When a new player is introduced into the team, Thompson slowly fades into the background. One night, when Tess (Whitlock), the six year old daughter of his girlfriend, Carly (Judd), loses a tooth, he is quick to claim that tooth fairies don't exist, much to the disappointment of Carly. Because of this, Thompson is sentenced to a week of being a tooth fairy by Lily (Andrews), the head tooth fairy. According to the rules, he cannot miss an assignment, otherwise his sentenced will be extended for another week. Thompson now has to fit his tooth fairy duties along with his failing hockey career and his now unstable relationship with Carly and her kids. I loved the way they introduced the concept of tooth fairies in the film. The wings were obviously made of wire and cloth, but it didn't really matter; I became more focused on the actors rather than the materials used in the costumes. Johnson was hilarious as tough guy who is forced to go through what he thinks is a humiliating situation (look at him in those silk baby blue pajamas with matching wings and tell me that you didn't crack up). Andrews provided a regal bearing to the film as the head honcho of the tooth fairies. Although his part in the film was small compared to the other actors, Billy Crystal added to the comical moments of the film as well. Quite surprising was Brandon T. Jackson's cameo as the flying instructor. Loved this film - hope you fellows will too. :)

You are the only wife I've got or ever will have. You are my whole existence, and I will love you until my last breath.

I've been longing to watch this film for ages, and I finally got the chance to do so last night. The film revolves around the early years of England's longest ruling monarch (to date), Queen Victoria (Blunt). Being the only child of the three royal brothers of England, she is, without a doubt, tapped to be the next ruling monarch. However, back in her home in Kent, there are those who wish to have her throne usurped - namely, Sir John Conroy (Strong), who insists to keep the princess under his control. Victoria's mother, the Duchess of Kent (Richardson), adds fuel to the fire by consenting to Sir Conroy's demands, and this puts her under a bad light during King William's (Broadbent) birthday party. Not soon after that, Sir Conroy lashes out at the princess, insisting that she rule along with her mother, and that she follow everything he orders her to do. When she refuses, Sir Conroy manhandles her, and Victoria is hurt and angry to see that her mother does nothing to stop it. During these turbulent times, Victoria meets Prince Albert. The two share a close correspondence throughout the years, and it can be said that they fall in love with each other. Albert is concerned with the way things are happening in Victoria's court, and although he strongly wishes to ask Victoria to marry him, he cannot, as the proposal should come from her. Meanwhile, Lord Melbourne (Bettany) does his best to assist the young queen, up to the point where controversy rocks the House of Lords over Lord Melbourne's appointment of the Queen's ladies-in-waiting (apparently, they are all wives of members of Lord Melbourne's political party). Victoria turns to Albert for support, and they eventually get married. Their love for each other is apparent in this film, and I love the way they carried their feelings for each other in a subtle manner - during the first minutes of the film, that is. Emily Blunt shines in the film; her portrayal of Queen Victoria carried the entire movie from start to finish. Even if you don't like historical dramas, period pieces, or whatever it is you call them nowadays, you'll surely appreciate the beauty of the costumes, the sets, and the behind-the-scenes look at how a monarch's life can be parallel to our own. Must see film. If you really really want to see this, you'll find a way. I know I did. ;)

Oh, just great! Perfect! John Glenn goes around the world, he's a senator for life. I went across the fricking universe! I should be governor, minimum! But, no, I'm marooned here on this stupid rock!

Another Pixar product; this film focuses on the possibility of humans landing on an alien planet and being thought of as the aliens. Astronaut Chuck Baker (voiced by Johnson) is given the surprise of his life when his spacecraft lands right smack in the middle of an alien backyard; specifically, the backyard of teenager Lem (voiced by Long). Lem has just gotten the job of his dreams working in the local astronomy museum, with the strong hopes of being the curator someday. He has also worked up the courage to ask the girl of his dreams, Neera (voiced by Biel) out on a date. However, his life is turned upside down when Baker arrives and asks for his help. The horrorstruck nation is thrown into an alien frenzy, aided by the so-called alien expert, Professor Kipple (voiced by Cleese) and the tough-as-nails General Grawl (voiced by Oldman). This alien race believes that aliens (quite, confusing, eh?) are beings who love taking over their brains, controlling them, and eventually having these for supper. Now, it is up to Lem and his unlikely group of friends, Skiff (voiced by William Scott), Eckle (voiced by Benedict), and Baker's robot dog, Rover, to bring Baker back to his spaceship before it manually leaves for Earth.
The film is a refreshing take on the whole humans-aliens angle, and the twist at the beginning made me stop and go "Whoa". I found it hard to visualize The Rock as the voice behind Baker, but it worked nevertheless. Not as good as previous Pixar films, but still well worth a try. ;) The storyline is easy to follow, and although you might be confounded by the 50's style present in the alien world, I think that's what makes the film more endearing and easy to watch; it's as if you're watching a CGI version of "Grease" with the Scorpion King thrown in the mix.

I love you in the way I understand love.

I'm a huge fan of epic and periodic movies, but this one really amazed me. Let me make it clear that I am no fan of Kiera Knightley, but in this movie, I couldn't help but admire her acting prowess. She's up against Ralph Fiennes, of all people, one of Britain's most talented thespians, and she is able to keep up and complement his portrayal of the cold Duke of Devonshire. Every scene kept me riveted, and despite my absolute love for Fiennes, I couldn't help but despise his calculated and heartless nature, especially when he goes looking for ways to have a male heir. King Henry VIII would have been proud.
Georgiana (Knightley) was only sixteen when she was betrothed to the powerful Duke of Devonshire (Fiennes), mostly by the doings of her mother, who promised the duke that the women in their family have always done what was expected of them. And what was expected of Georgiana was to provide the duke with a male heir. During the first year of their marriage, Georgiana discovered that her husband had a daughter with one of the maids, and even gave birth to a child of her own. Unfortunately, the child she bore was not the son the Duke hoped; instead, he was given another daughter. Six years later, the infuriated Duke still hasn't had the son he yearns for; their last child was also a girl. During a visit to Bath he sees Elizabeth Forster (Hayley Atwell), and is intrigued, especially by the fact that she bore her husband 3 boys. Georgiana notices her husband talking to Mrs. Forster, and initially suspicious, she approaches Elizabeth. The two become friends, and when Georgiana learns that Elizabeth is running low on rent money (her husband has a mistress, so she moved out, but as a result, her husband kept their children from her) she manipulates her husband in letting Elizabeth stay with them at their house in Devonshire. He agrees, and for a while, Georgiana is happy.
Then the time comes when she comes home from a rally for the Wit Party, headed by her close friend and admirer, Charles Grey (Dominic Cooper), when she hears her husband and Elizabeth having sex in Elizabeth's room. One thing leads to another, and Elizabeth has become the duke's mistress, Georgiana gets raped by her husband after trying to make a deal (if he insists on keeping Elizabeth in their house, then she should also be free to pursue her love for Charles Grey), and a scandal erupts after the duke learns of Georgiana's affair with Charles Grey.
The entire story is fast-paced, but the dialogue allows audiences to keep up with the story. All the actors work in perfect harmony with each other; Fiennes brings to life the Duke of Devonshire, and one cannot help but hate him for all the misery he brings to his wife; Knightley is plays the perfect martyr who gets back at her husband, irregardless of the scandal that her love for Charles Grey may bring; and Charlotte Rampling is the manipulative mistress whose sole excuse for engaging in an affair with the duke is to see her children again. The movie perfectly mirrors the activities of the aristocrats at the time, from the men's yearning and obsession to have a male heir, to the politics and scramblings of other nobles to get into the "good graces" of the upper classes. All in all, a classic.

Those who do evil to others - the killers, the rapists, psychos, sadists - you will come to know me well. Frank Castle is dead. Call me... The Punisher.

Wow. Despite the blood and violence, I still fell completely in love with this film. I don't have a lot of comic book background, but still, I was able to appreciate the simple storyline of this film: revenge. Revenge is the fueling factor for the hero and villain to provide a stirring conflict. Frank Castle (Jane) is a talented FBI agent who came fresh from a successful drug heist and is looking forward to spending a holiday and, finally, a relocation for himself and his wife, Maria (Mathis) and their only son, Will (Johns). Unfortunately, during the heist, he accidentally killed the youngest son of drug tycoon Howard Saint (Travolta, whose performance felt mediocre compared to the other villains he has previously portrayed). The latter swears revenge, and during the funeral for his son, Howard orders his henchmen to find and kill Castle. On the request of his wife, Livia (Harring), he also tells his right-hand man, Quentin Glass (Patton) to kill Castle's entire family. They succeed, but Castle survives, and this time, he sets his sights on the entire Saint family. Although the movie may seem like one "I hit you, you hit me back" film, the sheer amusement of seeing Travolta being hoodwinked into the final, fatal showdown with Castle - actually, scratch that. It doesn't even feel like a showdown, since Castle is the one throwing all of the major hits - makes up for what could have been a boring film. If they only made Travolta's character the same as his former villain roles, then this would have been top-notch.

You are credit to your race. Do you know how to remain so? Keep your eyes on the ground.

For God's sakes, when you're watching this film, don't keep your eyes off the screen! The third installment of the "Underworld" series started off with little promise; it must have been the knowledge that Kate Beckinsale wouldn't have made a major appearance in this film. Ever since The Mummy 3 didn't deliver as promised (I contribute it's semi-failure to the absence of Rachel Weisz), I became wary of how the trilogy would work out. Lo and behold, Rise of the Lycans was a fun follow-up to Underworld and Underworld Evolution.
Centuries before Selene (cameo by Beckinsale) was born, the powerful vampire coven, led by Viktor (Nighy), survived by exerting fear over the humans and fighting an endless battle with the products of William's (who is known as the werewolf brother of Markus) ravaging: the pure werewolves. When one of the werewolves gave birth to a human child, his instincts told him to destroy the child. Instead, he spared the baby's life and, when the child was all grown up, made him work for him as a slave. That child was Lucian (Sheen). Viktor took advantage of Lucian's ability to change into a werewolf and back to a human at will, and he created an army of deadly werewolf-human hybrids. These served as the vampire's protectors during the daytime, and at night, they did all the heavy labour. Viktor became too concerned with the state of affairs, that he failed to see a forbidden affair blossom between Lucian and his only daughter, Sonja (Mitra). The movie basically explores the origins of the Lycans and how the war between the vampires and werewolves started. This is no teeny-bopper film; the Gothic tones and entirely dark scenes (what I mean by that is that most of the scenes occurred during the night, save for when Lucian and a handful of his fellow Lycans escaped Viktor's keep) capture the dark mood and the feeling of how it is to be a creature of the night. No sparkles, no cheesy one-liners, this is how a vampire/werewolf showdown should be like.

Risk nothing and you gain nothing.

Apparently the makers of this film risked something when they cast two American actresses - albeit talented - into the roles of two famous British figures in history: Mary and Anne Boleyn. The latter is known for being the ill-fated second wife of King Henry VIII (Bana), while the former, unlike her sister, is hardly mentioned in history books (well, those which I have read, anyway). The film starts off with Sir Thomas Boleyn (Rylance) talking to his wife, Lady Elizabeth Boleyn (Scott Thomas) about the marriage offer of William Carey (Cumberbatch) to their eldest daughter, Anne (Portman). Instead of giving them Anne, he offered his younger daughter, Mary (Johansson) instead. Flash forward to many years later, Mary is getting ready to be married while Anne and their brother, George (Sturgess) happily and fondly dote over her. Soon after the wedding, Anne and Mary's uncle, the Duke of Norfolk (Morrissey), arrives and tells Anne that she can provide power and stature to their family by becoming the mistress of the King. Anne reluctantly agrees, and when the King arrives, she does all she can to get his affections. However, after a riding accident, King Henry comes face to face with Mary, and in the span of a half hour, he becomes completely besotted with the younger Boleyn girl. Instead of having Anne as his mistress, he takes Mary, despite her being married to William Carey. In a jealous fit, Anne swiftly marries Henry Percy (Coleman), but when her father and uncle find out about it through mary, they force her to divorce her husband and send her to France. Anne swears to get even with her sister, and her time comes when she returns from France, having received what her mother deems as a proper education for women. She quickly ignites the attraction and affection of the King, who unashamedly pursues her, despite the fact that Mary is pregnant with his child. Anne manipulates the events to her end, but things don't go as she planned. The ending... well, you'll have to watch the film to find out.
I loved the scenery and the costumes, and the acting chops of the cast was nothing short of perfection. Although I did have an issue with the accents Portman and Johansson presented, they gave a stunning and definitely believable performance. Bana shed off his gentlemanly appearance and became a raging bull when it came to the politics of the bedroom. A truly fantastic period piece.

"Off with their heads!"

A visionary treat. A fantastic fantasy. Love love love this.
For those who think that Burton is losing his touch, try seeing this film before badmouthing it and revel in the glory that is Burton, Depp, and Bonham Carter. The entire film caters to the deepest, darkest corners of your imagination and makes the childhood story of Lewis Carroll come alive. Actually, the movie starts off in an un-Tim Burton fashion, with Charles Kingsley comforting his seven year old daughter, Alice, who has woken up from another nightmare. Fast forward to thirteen years later, Alice is all grown up and is on her way to a party held by her father's closest friend and whose wife has been planning a wedding between Alice and Hammish. Burton doesn't keep audiences waiting; he quickly introduces the White Rabbit (with a fun performance by Sheen), who lures Alice back to the world she thought she only visited in her dreams. It so happens that Wonderland has been taken over by the Red Queen (played with hilarious perfection by Bonham Carter), as she has usurped the throne from her younger sister, the White Queen (portrayed by Hathaway, whom I have to commend for giving a weirdly ethereal performance) and has been ruling Wonderland with an iron fist - or, more appropriately, with a sharp, silver axe. Alice is now the only person whom the residents of Wonderland believe can stop the Red Queen's cruel rule by slaying the Jabbawocky (or, as the Red Queen lovingly calls it, the Jabba-baby-wocky) and bringing the White Queen back into power.
Do not expect this to stick to the Disney version, as Tim Burton, being the genius that he is, made the story as a sequel void of any emotion save for the apprehension of the Wonderland denizens over ending the Red Queen's rule and Alice feeling unsure of her ability to defeat the Jabbawocky. If you are looking for something unusual but amusing, this film is definitely for you.

"When you kill a king, you don't stab him in the dark. You kill him where the entire court can watch him die."

I have always been a fan of Leonardo DiCaprio's movies, and I honestly the man is versatile. This is probably my favorite film of his, aside from Titanic. He is joined by other talented actors, such as Daniel Day-Lewis, Cameron Diaz, and Liam Neeson, who only had a bit part in the film as the father of DiCaprio's father. Young Amsterdam Vallon (Cian McCormack) watches as his father, Priest Vallon (Neeson) prepare for battle. He knows that the Irish are being shunned by the Americans, who believe that no outsiders should set foot in their land. That day is the day when Priest Vallon faces the leader of the American group, Bill "The Butcher" Cutting (Day-Lewis), in a fight which will determine who is more superior between the two kins. During the battle, however, Priest Vallon is slain, and despite a seemingly generous gesture by Cutting to have Vallon properly buried, the image and memory stays in little Amsterdam's mind, and haunts him until he grows up. Now a young man, Amsterdam (now played by DiCaprio) leaves the monastery where he grew up, and travels to New York, in order to find the man responsible for the death of his father. The storyline was fantastic, and the way Scorsese visualized and directed the film was admirable. He certainly captured the atmosphere of the times, and I marveled at the lengths he went through in order to make the film as historically accurate as possible. What can I say? Scorsese is the man. :))) The acting was superb, plus the sets and costumes made you feel as if you were in that time period. Fantastic film; one any Scorsese fan shouldn't live without.

"If you value your life, come no further! "

Honestly, it was the presence of Daniel Craig which drew me to this film more than anything else. :)) However, I knew that this would probably be a film I could sink my teeth into after I read the initial summary in IMDB. And when I saw this film in theatres, I knew that I was right. Young Lyra Belaqua (Blue Richards) lives in a world where every human has his/her own animal counterpart, called a daemon. Hers is a twitchy little ferret named Pan (voice by Highmore). Her uncle is the famous (or, in the case of the members of the Magesterium, infamous) Lord Asriel (Craig), who has been avidly studying Dust, which is a taboo subject with the Magesterium. Despite many attempts to stop him from collecting more information on Dust, even attempting to kill him using poison in the wine, Lord Asriel goes about his task unfettered. After delivering a talk to a group of people, among which is a member of the Magesterium, Lord Asriel departs for the North, where he believes that Dust is in huge supply. Before he leaves, however, he cautions Lyra, his niece, about being too curious about Dust. Cue in Mrs. Marisa Coulter (Kidman), who becomes instantly enamored with Lyra and insists that she should stay with her while completing her education. However, Lyra soon discovers Mrs. Coulter's true nature, and she escapes. What follows shortly after that is Lyra's entanglement with the very forces her uncle warned her about. When I read the article about this movie being anti-Christ, I was intrigued. Well, basically, when I watched "The DaVinci Code", all I saw were the workings of an overactive writer's imagination, and not something that the Church should be nervous about, if they're sure that their 'followers' everywhere have a firm hold on their belief. So I took my usual movie money and sat through the showing. And what I saw was a movie not short of amazing, brilliant, and fantastic. Every scene was wonderful, and the cast was simply superb. The whole concept of Dust, and the exploitation of children was good, the latter being so because it's quite evident in society today, and I think it's supposed to be addressed by world leaders, and that the filmmakers were right to put an emphasis on it. I cannot say a bad word about the cast, because they all did a good job, and the discovery of Dakota Blue-Richards as Lyra Belaqcua is a first. Love this movie, and I can't wait for the sequel.